Expected Ways
by Untaken
Summary: After a long hiatus away in Broome, Barda pays Del another visit and brings some rousing news with him. Despite herself, Jasmine seems to not be as excited for her friend as everyone else is.
1. Lost Opportunity

**Disclaimer:** All recognizable characters are the creative property of Emily Rodda.

It was well past morning and the city of Del had already swelled with activity as citizens of all classes emerged from their homes to enjoy the new day, one filled with joy and peace. The people of the Topaz territory could hardly believe it: an entire veritable year had passed without any sort of monumental calamity or impending doom that would have forced the Deltoran Trio to once again risk their lives for the sake of the kingdom. It was an unexplainable, yet welcome surprise and no one dared to question it.

The sun shone brilliantly from the clear blue skies as it slowly made its way overhead towards the west. Shops and merchants sold their wares with vigor, and local eateries worked tirelessly to feed their hungry customers. Meanwhile, this flurry of movement contrasted sharply with the Palace, whose resident king still lay snoring softly in bed.

Lief could not remember another night that he had slept through so peacefully or with such content. Being king often required daily correspondence with his palace advisors in Del and the regional leaders from Deltora's other territories. Needless to say, it was tiring and left him little time to appreciate the sleep that the rest of the population took for granted.

That being said, last night Lief's closest advisor and concurrent father-in-law, Doom, had taken pity on his exhausted demeanor and abruptly ended the midnight meeting, allowing him to gratefully retire to his chambers. The young ruler had immediately collapsed next to his already slumbering wife and snuggled into her small warmth before falling into a blissfully deep sleep. Too soon, however, the sun had risen once more and the cycle was to begin all over again.

"Lief," a soft voice called. Behind his closed eyelids, the voice penetrated his dreaming state and he furrowed his eyebrows as he subconsciously willed his ears to ignore it. Alas, this person was persistent, and he soon realized it was futile to resist when he felt his arm being shaken rather forcefully.

He half-opened his eyes groggily, only to be temporarily blinded by the bright rays of sunlight streaming through the window. Tiredly rubbing at them to adjust to the light, he was met by the elfin face of his queen, who stood next to the bed and leaned over him.

"Jasmine?" Lief yawned. "What is it?"

"You have slept half the day away, _Your Highness_. It is time to awaken."

"Leave me be, Jasmine," he groaned. "Just a few more minutes." He closed his eyes once more, but knew there was little chance of her allowing him any more undisturbed rest. Jasmine often woke earlier than he did and she always insisted that he not waste the entire day in bed; however, Lief had come to find that he rather enjoyed teasing her with his morning apathy. He swatted lazily at her hands when she continued to shake his arm, and moments later heard the sharp click of her tongue. He stifled a laugh as he envisioned her standing defiantly next to him with a hand on her hip.

"It is almost noon and we have already missed the morning meal," Lief heard her chide. "Do you wish to miss luncheon as well?" The idea of the midday meal made his stomach rumble quietly, but the allure of the comfortable covers quickly silenced his hunger pains.

"I am not hungry," he lied.

Not one to be fooled, Jasmine shook her head in exasperation. "You certainly _sound_ hungry," she rebuked with a sigh. Curse her enhanced hearing.

The boy peeked open an eye to get a more wholesome view of the girl who, as he had imagined, stood impatiently next to the bed, with her hip cocked to one side. Judging from her wild black hair, which appeared even more untamed than usual, he figured she must not have woken very long ago herself.

He smiled and opened both his arms, holding them out to her. "Come back to bed, Jasmine," he coaxed gently in the most charming voice he could muster. When her expression deadpanned at his change in topic, he hurriedly added: "I am... cold." She glanced at the blankets that still covered his lower body and rolled her eyes before obliging to lay down on her side next to him.

Now fully awake, Lief wasted no time enveloping her small frame into his arms and placing a chaste kiss on the tip of her nose. Jasmine may have interrupted his much deserved rest, but he was quite content to merely lay in bed and inhale her scent as compensation. They stayed cuddled for a long moment, each enjoying the warmth the other gave.

"We cannot stay here all afternoon," the girl said softly, laying a small browned hand on his chest.

Lief stared into her emerald orbs, admiring the familiar fire and hidden compassion that shone in them. Her black locks flared over the pillow serenely and he reached up to brush away a stray strand that had fallen in front of her eyes. "And why not?" he teased playfully.

She looked strangely at him. "What do you mean 'why not'?" she repeated. "Have you already forgotten about today, Lief?"

"Today?" he asked curiously in return while absently rubbing her bare arm. "What is the occasion?"

He realized he must have sounded incredibly dimwitted because she did not hesitate to raise an eyebrow in response. "You truly do not remember?" The young king widened his hazel eyes when he noticed the hint of disappointment in her voice. He had heard many tales of Deltoran wives asking their husbands such questions regarding specific dates. More often than not, the questions somehow evolved into arguments which, as far as he could recall, never ended well for the men.

"Uh..." What had he forgotten? Lief silently berated himself for forgetting whatever today was. The boy had not imagined he would ever be stuck in this situation; up until now, he had always done fairly well in remembering such things. He quickly went over a list of several important days in his mind, attempting to single out which Jasmine was referring to.

It was assuredly not his birthday seeing as it was not yet summer; and if that was the case, then it was most definitely not _her_ day of birth as that was only a few weeks after his own. Lief glanced sidelong at the small nest on the nightstand which held Kree and Filli, both still fast asleep. Was it one of theirs? If it was, then there was clearly going to be trouble ahead; he had come to love them as family surely, but they had never celebrated either animal's birthday before and he had no doubt he would be at a complete loss on how to. He was not sure anyone other than Jasmine even knew when Kree and Filli had been born.

Shaking the thought out of his mind, he proceeded to check off more significant dates. He was certain it was not their anniversary or anything of that sort; after all, they had not yet concluded their first year of marriage. Was it something else that she found important? While Lief knew Jasmine was never one to acknowledge such trivial matters, he was also aware that she could be rather unpredictable when she wished to be.

Jasmine continued to stare at her husband expectantly, causing him to panic and consider merely guessing at what day she was speaking about. However, Ranesh had forewarned him before that to do so was tantamount to a deadly game of chance and that, based on personal experience with Marilen, the repercussions for guessing incorrectly were grave.

Not quite ready to face such consequences, Lief mused whether he would be better off admitting that he had absolutely no idea what significance the day held. Indeed, according to his mother, complete honesty was always the most secure way in maintaining a relationship; and in any case, the truth was what Jasmine deserved, was it not?

On the verge of deciding to come clean, a thought of unspeakable horror soon came to mind. What if it was not _one_ specific event of the year that Jasmine was referring to? Perhaps it was a recurring event; a _monthly_ recurring event, in fact. He prayed with all his might that it was not so. The mysterious workings of a woman's body were very vital for childbearing, and he respected that; yet, at the same time, the way it made Jasmine behave had never truly taken his fancy.

Intending to simply ask what today really was, Lief took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak, but stopped short when he noticed the threateningly unamused expression the girl had donned. He gulped nervously and instead switched to a timeless tactic: "You are so beautiful, Jasmine."

At this, her cheeks brightened into a rosy pink and the boy gave himself a mental pat on the back for successfully diverting her attention as he resumed rubbing her arm. She was doubtlessly still not used to such comments from him, which might have been a helping factor, but Lief reasoned to himself that it was, at the very least, the plain truth.

Indeed, Jasmine had grown into quite an attractive woman and the male populace in Del had recently begun to take notice, especially when she dressed more formally for special occasions. Lief did not understand why all the young men took such a sudden interest in his wife; unlike them, he had always found her captivating. Yet, despite her position as Deltora's heroine and as his queen, their gazes still lingered on her whenever the couple made public appearances, much to Lief's chagrin.

Suddenly, Jasmine's eyes narrowed as she glanced at his hand, which continued to stroke her arm, and misinterpreted the intentions behind his words and actions. "We do not have time for such things, Lief," she scolded while slapping his hand away and turning her head haughtily. "Barda could be arriving anytime soon... and besides, it is much too early for that."

Barda, of course! Lief smiled at the thought of his old friend, who he remembered had sent a letter just last week announcing plans to visit Del with his wife, Lindal. It had been many moons since Barda last dropped by and Lief was mildly surprised at himself for having temporarily forgotten about the former Captain.

Attributing it to his recent weariness, the sensible half of his mind swiftly dismissed the thought while the impetuous half began to focus on everything else Jasmine had said. Lief did not often tease her about their more physical intimacies, but he could not bear to pass up this chance and played along.

Holding her chin gently between his thumb and finger, he turned her head back to face him. "As you said before, it is already almost noon," he reminded cheekily. "That does not seem very early to me." Lief knew better than to expect any sort of concession from Jasmine, but he still loved these whimsical moments nonetheless. In any case, his youthful urges rationalized that there _was_ always the off-chance she would agree, and he saw no harm in that.

In response, Jasmine rolled her eyes with a smirk, earning a boyish grin from him. He leaned forward to capture her lips in his own but was stopped by a gentle push on his chest. Lief glanced in confusion at his wife, who had widened her smirk and lowered her eyelids in a sultry manner.

"I suppose you are right..." Jasmine murmured suggestively, "...that is, as long as we do not wake Kree or Filli, of course." She traced the muscles on his chest with the tip of her finger, causing Lief to shudder slightly at her touch. Was she truly saying what he thought she was saying? An inane grin spread across his young face at the thought of what was to come and he moved his hand to begin rubbing the small of her back. "However, you _did_ say you were not hungry. It is a shame, really."

"What?" Lief said in a voice that broke more than he would have liked. Disturbed by the boy's relatively loud whine, Kree began ruffling his feathers as he and Filli slowly stirred in their nest.

"Now look what you have done, Lief," Jasmine reprimanded with a laugh. In one fluid movement, the girl dove under his embrace and leapt nimbly from the bed. She landed gracefully on the cold floor, leaving behind a dumbfounded and frowning king, and proceeded to scoop up her faithful companions, hugging them close to her chest in greeting.

Lief sat up and folded his arms across his chest. "And when did _you_ become such a minx?" he complained, causing Jasmine to giggle at the childish pout on his face. The faint ringing of the kitchen bell could be heard in the distance, and he wordlessly watched as she gently placed Kree and Filli back into the nest and searched around the room to find her boots and dagger.

As the girl scurried, she tossed Lief's cloak and jacket to him. "Come now, Your Majesty," she goaded with a twinkle in her bright green eyes. "It would still be wise to eat _something_, even if you are not hungry."

Lief sighed in defeat and grabbed the attire Jasmine had thrown him, silently regretting that he had agreed to allow Kree and Filli to sleep in their chambers. Checking to ensure the Belt of Deltora was still securely fastened around his waist, he glared lightheartedly down at the Diamond. Withick must have been mistaken when he had written about the powers of that particular gem; Adin knows it certainly had not helped the cause of true love minutes before. Standing from the bed with a yawn, Lief stretched his arms in a wide arc before reaching to slip on his own boots.

Meanwhile, Kree flew up to perch on Jasmine's arm as Filli leapt from their nest onto the top of the boy's head. Taking his wife's hand, Lief inconspicuously stroked her fingers with his thumb until he felt the familiar cold metal of her silver wedding band. Satisfied after locating it as he did every morning, he smiled slightly and led her out the door.

As they walked in companionable silence towards the Dining Hall, Lief found himself to be rather excited about Barda's visit. He had missed the bearded man sorely, more so than he was willing to admit. Indeed, the exchanging of letters could only do so much for conversation and both he and Jasmine longed to once again hear the deep boisterous laughter they had grown so accustomed to.

Sensing Lief's excitement, Filli began bouncing happily on his head, causing him to chuckle softly and break the comfortable silence. He reached his free hand up to stroke the Siskis' fur while Kree fluttered from Jasmine's arm and landed on his shoulder. As if apologizing for interrupting what he had deemed to be an opportune moment, the animals began nuzzling into him affectionately. He grinned at their antics; they knew as much as Lief did that he could never stay angry at them.

Realizing they would be late for the start of the meal, the young king hurried his pace as he held Jasmine's hand. Sharn and Doom had agreed that they would all meet outside at the Palace Gates after luncheon to wait for Barda's arrival. This was a convenient plan, seeing as in his letter Barda had said that he would be bringing some important news with him to Del, and that he planned to tell everyone at the same time.

Although enthusiastic at the anticipation of seeing Barda again, Lief vacantly wondered at what was considered so important that it could not be disclosed in the same letter. Pushing the thought out of his mind, he urged his legs to move quicker. The boy knew if he was not there with everyone else to greet Barda upon arrival, the big man would surely never let him hear the end of it.


	2. Surprise From Broome

**Disclaimer: **All recognizable characters are the creative property of Emily Rodda.

The sun had already begun to set as they waited at the tall wooden gates for Barda's approaching shadow. Fiery orange and hazy red splattered like paint across the sky, accompanying the eventide glow. Holding his wife's hand, Lief kept gazing earnestly over the stretch of cobble leading up the Palace Hill in hopes of glimpsing his friend's arrival. They had been waiting for quite some time and Jasmine, who quickly become bored, was meanwhile occupying herself with her animal friends.

Next to them was the imposing man called Doom, who was engaged in quiet conversation with Sharn. Both of them wore masked expressions on their faces and, judging from their whispering and the occasional grunt, they seemed to be discussing something of great importance.

Off to the side stood Ranesh and his wife, Marilen, who cradled the infant Josef in her frail arms. Breaking for a second from his faithful watch, Lief spared them a quick glance. He was unsurprised to see weariness and lack of sleep clearly etched on their faces, no doubt the result of the sleeping child Marilen carried. They looked considerably older than they really were and the tiredness in their eyes only added to their aged appearances.

Despite himself, the arrival of Lief's newborn nephew into the Royal Family had not particularly affected his life as much as he had expected. Josef surely kept Marilen and Ranesh up at night, but the Palace was an incredibly large structure and Lief could not recall a time when he could hear the loud unceasing cries of the child at night, despite what his cousin claimed.

As if on cue though, the babe suddenly gave an ear-splitting howl and began to bawl incessantly. Alarmed at first, Marilen looked down at her son and sighed before starting to bounce her arms slightly in an attempt to comfort him. Sharn and Doom, on the other hand, were interrupted by the sharp cries and paused in their conversation; Jasmine glanced over her shoulder to see what the commotion was, but shortly returned her attention to Filli after discerning the source.

Sensing Marilen's exhaustion, Ranesh carefully scooped little Josef up in one arm and pinched the bridge of his nose with his free hand. "Lief, we cannot wait any longer," he croaked, attempting to project his voice over the wailing bundle in his arm. "We must return to the Palace and put Josef to sleep. It is getting late for him in any case."

Lief nodded in understanding. "Of course. We will see you two at supper, then?"

"I believe we will also retire to bed," Marilen answered with a shake of her head. "I am rather tired, in any case. Good night, everyone, and do give Barda our apologies for not being here when he arrives." After they had all given their respective farewells and good-nights, she and Ranesh turned and strode swiftly with their still crying son towards the aged doors that barred the entrance to the Palace.

Lief continued to stare at the stone doorway long after they had both disappeared inside. He pitied Marilen and her husband. Josef had truly begun to take a toll on his young parents lately and the king suspected the couple had as little sleep as he himself did at times, albeit for completely different reasons.

Not long after Marilen had left, the boy was abruptly torn from his thoughts by a loud shout from the girl next to him: "Barda!" He turned his head in time to see Jasmine wave her free arm frantically at some shadows in the distance that were advancing up the hill. Upon closer inspection, he smiled widely as he clearly made out two figures situated atop what appeared to be horses.

Lief watched as Jasmine pulled her hand out of his grip and started running down the snake-like path towards the figures with Filli on her shoulder and Kree following close behind in the sky. He himself could not quite see and confirm whether it was truly Barda or not, but he knew better than to doubt Jasmine's superior vision and took off excitedly after his wife.

By the time he caught up with her, the first figure had already dismounted and stood next to its steed, brushing the horse's brown mane gently. Lief's face lit up when he saw that it was indeed Barda who stood there, as tall and broad as ever. When the young rulers reached their old bearded friend, they both immediately rushed to embrace him tightly, nearly knocking him off his feet.

"Oof," Barda grunted with a squint as they collided into him. "Must you do that each time? You are both becoming quite heavy." Pulling back, the couple grinned at one another as they both noticed the small twinkle of laughter in the man's eyes.

"Perhaps you should visit more often then, Barda," Lief said with a chuckle while throwing an arm around Jasmine, who nodded in agreement. "We would surely grow tired of hugging you if that were the case." From the evening air, Kree flew down and perched on a nearby tree, cawing in greeting at Deltora's third hero while Filli chattered in acknowledgement on Jasmine's shoulder.

"One would think I had just miraculously returned from the dead, the way you two act," Barda scoffed in mock exasperation. Lief grimaced slightly at this; unpleasant memories of Barda's many near-death moments began flooding into his mind, from being saved by the Lilies of Life to Dain's treacherous poisoning. He promptly shook his head clear of such thoughts.

"Oh, lay off it, Old Bear. They have clearly missed you."

Remembering the man had not arrived alone, Lief looked up towards the other figure who had spoken. "Hello, Lindal," he said with a smile while Jasmine gave a polite wave beside him.

"Greetings, little king!" Lindal boomed in return with a broad grin of her own as she waved back at Jasmine. Oddly, she did not alight from her horse even after having reached them and Lief noticed she was wrapped in a large dark shroud that seemed to blend in with the black coat of her mare. The shawl covered her completely from the neck down and only her bald head and muscular arms and were visible. Lindal had always been a rather burly woman who rivaled even Barda in terms of height; however, despite her past reconciliation with the Ruby Dragon, she still followed Broome culture faithfully and kept her head shaved and painted.

Joining the reunion, Sharn and Doom appeared suddenly from behind after following their excitable children down the roadway and also offered their own greetings. "It is good to see you again, Barda," Sharn spoke when she reached them, "and you as well, Lindal." Lief watched as the Broome couple bowed their heads respectfully in reply to his mother, who continued: "Marilen and Ranesh send their apologies for not being present."

"Aye," said Doom. "Josef has been quite the handful lately."

"A shame," Lindal replied nonchalantly, "we will have to see them on the morrow then."

Barda, meanwhile, raised both of his eyebrows in surprise at the scarred man. "You are still here, Doom?" he asked. "It has been months since last we visited. I would have thought you would be out chasing dragons and the such by now." At this, Lief focused his attention on his father-in-law curiously. He too had often inwardly wondered why Doom still had not left the Palace; after all, the man had said he had wanted to study in detail Deltora's flying beasts. The boy glanced beside him at Jasmine, who seemed to be listening closely herself to her father's next words.

"The time is not right," Doom answered with a dismissive shrug. "My desires are not urgent, and Ranesh is clearly too involved with Josef at the moment to take my place as an advisor." Barda nodded slowly in understanding. It seemed Doom would be staying in the Palace for a while; at least until the lives of the current Palace Librarians stabilized a little.

From atop her horse, Lindal began to grin widely once more. "Things are slow to change here in Del, are they not, Old Bear?" she joked with a deep chuckle. "Why, look at Jasmine! All those months since we have last seen her and she _still_ has the waist of a maiden!"

Lief mentally cringed at the woman's choice of words, which seemed to echo the sentiment of the numerous letters he had been receiving recently. There was no doubt mounting pressure from the conservative classes in Del for an heir to the Belt, and while Lief had been rather successful in keeping this fact from his wife, the last thing he needed was for Lindal to add to it.

Next to him, Jasmine gave a lighthearted snort in response. "I should think I cannot be held accountable for that, Lindal," she retorted with a smirk. "After all, even by Del's standards, I am no longer viewed as one."

Hearing this, Lief did a double take and looked down in surprise at his wife; he had not expected her to disclose their more private moments so openly. Feeling the stares of the others on him, he glanced up and was met with a mix of curious and amused expressions, which fostered a deep scarlet shade on his cheeks. Both Sharn and Barda had knowing smiles etched on their faces; however, the stoic face Doom wore made Lief shift uneasily on his feet. Were such things not expected of a married couple? And if not, then Adin forgive him for doing _his_ part in securing an heir.

Meanwhile, Lindal and Jasmine seemed oblivious to the distress that they were inducing on Lief and carried on nominally in their conversation. "The little king does not please you enough, eh?" jested the laughing Broome woman, who was then joined by the boisterous guffawing of her husband.

At this, Doom ominously raised a single brow, all the while keeping his steady gaze on his son-in-law and causing Lief to chuckle nervously. Although the man was not one to be an overprotective father, the boy knew better than to take any chances. When Jasmine seemed about to respond to Lindal, he hastily pulled her to his chest and clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Barda," Lief called to the still laughing man in a desperate bid to change the topic. "You said you had some news to share?" Struggling to contain the girl in his arms, he could almost feel the menacing glare she directed at him and he flashed her an apologetic smile.

The bearded man cleared his throat as he recovered from his hysterics at the young king's expense. "Ah, yes," he began. "It is funny we should mention a woman's waistline and the like, for I bring good tidings indeed." Offering his hand to Lindal, who still sat situated on her horse, Barda gently helped her down to stand on the cold stone path and made a deliberate show of carefully unwinding the fabric wrapped around her.

Eyes widened and Lief heard the girl he held draw a sharp intake of breath as Lindal was slowly revealed in whole. While the woman was just as strong and muscular as she had always been, a single peculiarity stood out and a silence settled on the group. Much to their astonishment, in the middle of the Lindal's belly was a noticeably small bump: an indication that could have only one meaning.

For a long moment, nobody spoke, and in truth, nobody wished to in fear of saying the wrong thing. Instead, they continued staring mouth agape at Lindal while Barda stood and crossed his arms smugly with a smirk.

Off to the side, Sharn was the first to overcome her shock and rushed to embrace the expectant couple tightly with newly formed tears filling her aged eyes. "How long?" she asked Lindal softly, breaking the stunned silence that had washed over them all.

"It has been almost a fortnight since I have begun to show." At this, Barda moved to place a hand on his wife's stomach and beamed proudly as he accepted Doom's own hardened congratulatory handshake.

Lief, in turn, quickly followed his mother's example and released Jasmine from his hold to embrace the father-to-be. "I am very excited for you, my friend," he said sincerely. His heart was full; after so many years of darkness, it seemed life in Deltora was truly starting to brighten. "But why did you not tell us sooner?"

"I had considered it," Barda replied with a shrug, "but I figured it would be a more pleasant surprise to tell you all in person." Lief smiled in agreement alongside his old friend and laughed to himself as he envisioned a miniature version of Barda running around bare naked in Broome. All the more reason to visit the Ruby city in the future.

* * *

><p>For the next hour, they continued in companionable conversation, with the men reminiscing about their recent happenings and ordeals, while Sharn gushed maternally over Lindal. Soon, the horizon darkened considerably as the setting sun sunk behind the rolling green hills of the country side. In the dusk sky, the sliver of a growing moon could be seen and the shimmers of stars began popping sporadically as twilight began to set in.<p>

"It is almost time for supper," Sharn reminded gently as she gazed admiringly at the fiery orange halo in the distance. "Shall we return?" Looking up at the early night, Lief nodded thoughtfully; they had been out longer than he had realized.

"Well I, for one, am quite starved!" announced Barda as he worked to rein up his mare. "But first, Lindal and I must take our steeds to Zerry." He reached his hand out to Lindal to help her back up on her own horse, but was subsequently refused the honor as she rolled her eyes and defiantly worked her way on top of the saddle herself. Shrugging his broad shoulders, the man tugged softly on the reins and began to lead the horses up the winding path to the stables with Lindal trailing after him.

Lief watched as his mother and Doom also proceeded to follow them towards the Palace. Not wanting to be left behind, the boy turned around, intending to take the hand of his wife. Instead, he found Jasmine to be seemingly lost in her own thoughts, with her eyebrows furrowed in a manner that he had always found adorable and her emerald eyes piercing the ground in front of her feet.

"Jasmine," Lief called in an attempt to catch her attention. She snapped her head up at the sound of his voice and turned her head towards him, surprised to find that they had been left alone. Like Barda, he then offered his own hand with a small smile and jerked his head to the side to indicate where the others had gone. Unlike Barda, however, his wife accepted his gesture and gave a sharp whistle to call for Kree, who flew down from the tree branch to land beside Filli on her shoulder.

In no real hurry, Lief began making his way back home and walked at a much slower pace than the others. He stole a glance at the girl as she fell into place beside him and subsequently returned to her previous state of deep pondering. She had been strangely quiet for quite some time now, and a part of him wondered if there was anything bothering her. Knowing Jasmine, it could very well be nothing; she was certainly a very difficult person to read at times.

"Is something wrong, Jasmine?" asked Lief after a considerable length of silence, a hint of concern edging in his voice.

"Hmm?" she replied absently. "No, nothing is wrong." Lief knew his lovely queen was not particularly adept at lying, but even he had to admit that this was a poor attempt on her part.

"Are you sure?" To say he was unconvinced would be a notable understatement, but getting a real answer from her would prove to be a very different story in and of itself. Nevertheless, the dismissive wave of her hand and her flippant attitude in the words that followed were more than enough to deter the young king from questioning further:

"You worry too much, Lief."


End file.
